Eyler will pay $25K to county

After agreeing to a $25,000 settlement Tuesday, former assessor's official Greg Eyler is no longer a defendant in a lawsuit brought by San Bernardino County.

County attorneys launched the lawsuit in May 2009 against Eyler, former county Assessor Bill Postmus, former Rancho Cucamonga Councilman Rex Gutierrez, former assistant assessors Adam Aleman and Jim Erwin, and political consultant Michael Richman and his firm MPR Strategies.

The lawsuit accused the defendants of fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, improper expenditure of public funds, unjust enrichment and civil conspiracy.

As a part of the settlement, Eyler will pay the county $25,000 in monthly payments of $100 until Dec. 1, when he will begin paying $200 per month.

"This is a settlement that both parties agreed was fair and equitable," county spokesman David Wert said.

Eyler, 35, is an unemployed part-time student, and the factors were taken into account when county attorneys devised the settlement, Wert said.

"It's unreasonable to expect someone in his position to agree to a settlement of substantially more money," he said. "The idea here is to basically be reasonable and get some degree of reparation for the taxpayers."

The county will drop Eyler as a defendant in the case, according to the settlement agreement.

Eyler, who was a taxpayer advocate in the Assessor's Office, could not be reached Tuesday for comment. Calls Tuesday to Eric Teti, the public defender who represented him in the case, were not returned.

When asked if the county is pursuing settlements with any of the other defendants named in the lawsuit, Wert did not comment. Postmus said there will not be a settlement for him.

The county launched the lawsuit after attorney John Hueston released a 33-page report characterizing the Assessor's Office as "plagued by serious, rampant misconduct," including erratic attendance, abuse of county resources and political activity conducted by employees on county time.

Hueston was the former Enron prosecutor commissioned by the county to investigate Postmus and alleged misconduct at the Assessor's Office.

According to Hueston's report, Eyler's job attendance was sporadic, and when he did show up, he spent most of his time socializing and drinking coffee.

Several witnesses told Hueston that Eyler was involved in a romantic relationship with Postmus, an allegation Eyler denied.

Postmus called the settlement "absolutely unjust" in an an e-mail Tuesday and said it won't weaken his resolve to fight the "politically-motivated" lawsuit in court.

"The county Board of Supervisors has engaged in blatant hypocrisy, and similar actions by elected members of the board, along with board staff, will be proven during the process of discovery," he wrote.

Postmus faces multiple felony counts of grand theft and misappropriation of public funds. The next court date for the criminal case is Jan. 28.